Jambalaya is a dish best served spicy and warm over a bed of rice – did I mention spicy? Ben and I LOVE spicy foods, but our kids like not-so-spicy foods so we often keep Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning close by so we can add it to our food. Ben even puts it on his eggs! But every now and then I break away from the dishes that are made with aromatic, flavorful spices and break out the Creole and Cayenne Pepper just for Ben and I. (We give a little to the kids, but load them up with more rice than Jambalaya).

I hope you try this recipe that have honed over the years to kick it up a notch: make it and freeze some to enjoy later.

Here is almost everything I used, the only thing missing is the frozen shrimp and bacon. I know it looks like a lot of ingredients, but it can take less time if you do prep work in bulk. For example:

When I buy onions and peppers, I buy a bunch at Costco and take the time that day to slice and chop then freeze. It saves me a lot of time throughout the week. You can do the same with the chicken and sausage, cut a lot in cubes and freeze. So next time you want to make Jambalaya it’ll take half the prep time!

I added everything Except for the shrimp and bacon. The frozen shrimp is added in the last 30 minutes. I used one piece of crisp bacon per serving as a garnish.

The final dish, it was very flavorful and ensured I drank my daily allowance of water!

This past time when I made it, I didn’t even bother to thaw the chicken and cut in cubes- after 7 hours on low I was able to shred the chicken. I love meals you can make and forget about. Thanks for sharing and I’d love to hear if you liked it.

Hey I'm Stephanie of Grinning Like An Idiot. Grinning Like An Idiot is me whenever I do something that makes me happy, whether it is sewing, painting, vacationing, a funny interaction, just life in general. Read More